24® Game History

In 1988, successful inventor ROBERT SUN embarked on a journey to teach children the relationship between numbers through a game. The result of his efforts was the 24® game, a unique mathematics teaching tool that has proven to successfully engage students in grades 1 through 9 from diverse economic and social backgrounds. "Knowing the answer is always 24 alleviates a classic brand of math anxiety—getting the right answer—and instead puts the emphasis on the process and patterns, what I like to call the method behind the math,” says Sun.

That original, Single Digits game evolved into nine editions that educators, parents and children embraced. Today, these innovative tools are still helping to create a new generation of students to become critical thinkers and problem solvers.

Suntex International Inc., the company Robert Sun founded, is an organization committed to furthering mathematics education. “Our goal is to use the innovative 24® game as a tool to make math appealing, accessible and fun—thereby helping students to excel in math, science and related fields,” Sun explains.

As a logical step toward that goal, Suntex created 24 Challenge® Math Program competitions—or “tournaments” as they came to be known—based on the 24® game. Tournaments activate entire communities and involve parents and families in the goal to raise mathematics achievement among students.

In 2002, with the rise of a generation of web learners, Sun created the web-based First In Math® Online Program. More than just a “fun” activity, First In Math® offers substantive content that supports any curriculum. Eight Skill Set® groups offer a full range of challenge and tie into National and State standards.

In December of 2010, a downloadable Single-Digits version of the popular 24® Game made its debut at Apple’s iTunes App Store. The “i” version of the Single Digits game plays like its card-game predecessor, but users play to beat their own best time, or challenge friends to see who is the quickest—Current Time and Best Time are displayed.

In 2018, the 24® Game celebrates its 30th anniversary, continuing to help children sharpen basic math skills such as computation, problem solving, number sense, critical thinking, and pattern sensing. The 24® Game, and the First In Math® Online Program, are helping to create a new generation of students become critical thinkers and problem solvers.

Follow our  24 GAME Twitter account for contests and prizes throughout  the 2019-20 school year!